Choice brings changes

Tuesday

Dec 27, 2011 at 12:01 AM

When the Oregon Legislature approved a package of school bills earlier this year, an editorial in this space labeled one of the pieces of legislation a ďsleeperĒ ó House Bill 3681, which will allow students to enroll in any school district that agrees to accept them. Register-Guard reporter Susan Palmer detailed the scant attention given to this far-reaching change on Dec. 18, noting that HB 3681 was the subject of little debate and only one public hearing. The implications, however, are beginning to sink in.

Lane Countyís 16 school districts havenít decided whether to admit students from other districts, but they have a strong incentive to open their doors. State funding will follow each transfer student to his or her new district, which places a bounty of about $5,000 on each pupilís head. The prospect of increased state funding will be particularly appealing to districts that have lost enrollment and have excess capacity in their school buildings. Palmer quoted officials in the Eugene and South Lane school districts who said they expect their districts will approve out-of-district transfers early next year.

School administrators arenít expecting a flood of transfers, at least not right away. Students attending out-of-district schools must provide their own transportation, which creates a formidable barrier to some families. The Oregon State Activities Association continues to require students participating in interscholastic sports and other activities to live in the school district in which they compete. The OSAA rule will deter districts from recruiting star athletes and impede the emergence of sports dynasties.

But families with the resources or the determination to send their children to out-of-district schools will find ways around these obstacles. In some states that have implemented open-enrollment policies, 8 percent of students transfer to schools outside their home districts. If 8 percent opt to transfer in Lane County, about 3,700 students would shift from one district to another. Thatís enough to affect school districts in significant ways.

One effect is predictable, because it has already been seen in the Eugene School District, which has had a districtwide open enrollment policy for decades. The families most likely to take advantage of transfer options will be relatively affluent, committed to education and white. Students from these families will become more concentrated in districts perceived to offer superior academic programs. The state resources that follow these students will strengthen their new districts, while the districts left behind will be weakened.

Over time, open enrollment could act as a solvent upon the cohesion of communities, particularly in rural areas where schools are a primary source of local identity. A family that sends its children away to school will be less bound to its community of residence, and less concerned about the quality of nearby schools. Voters whose children are being educated elsewhere would have little incentive to support tax increases for local schools.

Long-term effects on real estate values and development patterns could also occur. Families will be able to have rural addresses and urban schools, and vice versa. School district boundariesí influence on familiesí decisions about where to live will wane.

Private schools can expect more competition. Part of their enrollment is currently made up of students whose families, for any number of reasons, are unhappy with their local schools. Open enrollment will widen the range of choices, allowing parents to send their children to any public school for free. Some students who are homeschooled or enrolled in online schools may also find attractive public-school options.

Within five or 10 years, a few of Lane Countyís school districts are likely to have become bigger and stronger as a result of open enrollment. A few others are likely to shrink, pushing them even closer to a point at which they can no longer offer an adequate education. Some of the difficult progress that Oregon has made toward equalizing educational opportunities among rich and poor school districts could be lost.

Proponents of open enrollment claim that choice and competition will bring general improvements in education. Thatís a powerful argument. Yet the public school system is guided by the principle that every child has a right to an education, and the introduction of competition and choice increases the risk that some children, even entire communities, will be left behind.

This risk was unexplored in the process leading to approval of HB 3681. Mitigating it will be Oregonís central challenge as it moves toward implementing open enrollment.

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